How This Note Could Make You Money: Using Your Failures for Success

I’m far from perfect. Even though I’ve been investing for 7 years now I still make plenty of mistakes. And I’m going to show you how if you make mistakes like I do, you can turn them around and make money from them.

So let me tell you what happened…

Now that I’m a successful investor and have plenty of money I’m willing to take more risks. Not stupid risks, but more calculated risks. For example, I will do a deal on a property that I’m not so sure I’ll be able to sell on a lease option. I will 100% tell the seller this upfront and we will agree that if I can’t sell the property I am just going to turn it back over to him.

This type of deal is worth it to me because I make at least $30,000 when a property sells and if it doesn’t all I’ve lost is my time. The key to this type of deal is being honest upfront with the seller that you’re not sure this is a good property and you are in a sense doing them a favor. But if it doesn’t work out they get the property right back.

Well… this is exactly what happened on a deal I did awhile back.

The tenant didn’t end up buying the property and I wasn’t too fond of it in the first place, so I turned it back over to the seller.

And whenever I am dealing with sellers whether it’s getting a property from them, turning one over or anything at all, I always do it myself. I take my business extremely seriously since it puts food on the table and I want to be the one handling important interactions.

But… with this particular property I was out of town for the turnover. I was not happy about this, but it was a simple turnover and I had my assistant do the cleaning and everything to get the property in order. Once she was done, she then she met with the seller and turned things over.

This is the first time ever I have let someone else do this…

And I’m sure you know what happened. I got a call from the seller that he was not happy with the way the house was cleaned and things were put back in order. I thoroughly apologized and then sent him a check for a couple hundred dollars to get things the way he wanted.

Then, he sent me the email below…

Jason –

Somewhere in your background is a teacher who taught you “character.” Character is who you are when no one is looking. You have demonstrated this rare trait exhibited by so few businessmen these days; I am thoroughly grateful. This is more than fair – I think it is the right thing to do considering the circumstances. Most good lessons cost us something; in this case you will know to personally check on the important things of property turnover, the next time.

So what lessons did I learn? Well, first to never again let someone handle these important meetings. (I already knew this but didn’t listen to myself). Second, that doing the right thing will always make you more successful. This particular owner has other properties I could do deals on.

But here’s the best part…

Guess what I’m going to do with that email? I’m going to add it to my testimonial folder that I show sellers when I meet with them. I’ll explain to potential sellers what happened and tell them they have nothing to worry about with my company because we will always do the right thing. There is no doubt in my mind that the new testimonial will help me close more deals.

So when you screw up and get a note like the one above, put it to use to help you close deals and make more money.

One last thing. If you liked today’s post you’re going to really want to read next week. Because next week I finally get to reveal my deepest darkest real estate secrets of how I really became successful. The secrets you can use to make a small fortune like me.

I’ve wanted to reveal these for years but I could have gone to jail for sharing them. For the first time ever I have approval to tell you everything. See you next week.

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About Author

Jason R. Hanson is the founder of National Real Estate Investor Month and the author of “How to Build a Real Estate Empire”. Jason specializes in purchasing properties “subject-to” and has purchased millions of dollars worth of property using none of his own cash or credit.